Majd Abdel Hamid's London debut at Cell Project Space explores textile resistance and temporal defiance

Palestinian artist Majd Abdel Hamid presents his first London solo exhibition, Daydreamers, at Cell Project Space in Cambridge Heath, east London, running until 25 May 2025. The show features textile works that challenge modern time constructs through slow, repetitive embroidery. Hamid, based in Beirut, uses collected fabrics that fray before being woven into circles, referencing binary code and Jacquard loom punch cards. His series Daydreamers (Code) (2024–) and Daydreamers (Fortune Tellers) (2025–) include over 600 fabric fortune-tellers that will be gifted to visitors. Another series, 12-23 (End of Chapter) (2012–23), portrays Mohamed Bouazizi, whose self-immolation sparked the Arab Spring, with portraits embroidered by women from Farkha village in Palestine's West Bank. Curator Adomas Narkevičius notes Hamid's technique as one of recording, reflection, and refusal. The exhibition critiques London's hyper-optimized pace and capitalist structures while celebrating daydreaming as resistance. Works like Ode to the Sea (Soap) (2024), made with Aleppo soap and silk, highlight everyday objects. The gallery's intimate, cell-like space encourages patient contemplation, with a paper catalogue providing context in lieu of wall labels.